How to install node-connect on an old Model B?

Question

I am a newbie here, with some background on Linux and Arduino. I made a Web interface for an Arduino-based project that works fine on my Ubuntu 16.04 desktop. Now I am trying to port it to our favorite SBC.

I have a Raspberry Pi Model B. It's the old, ARM11-based board, with the 26-pin GPIO header, running an up-to-date Raspbian 7 Wheezy. I need to install the connect node package on it.

On my Ubuntu desktop, I just issued

sudo apt-get install node-connect

and it just worked. However, it would seem this package is not available on Raspbian 7.

Preliminary question

Could I upgrade this board to the latest Raspbian Jessie Lite? Doesn't that image require an ARM with an FPU? If I can do it, would that solve my problem?

Main question

Assuming I am stuck with Wheezy, I tried to install connect the NPM way:

npm install connect

and here is what I got:

npm http GET https://registry.npmjs.org/connect

npm ERR! Error: failed to fetch from registry: connect
npm ERR!     at /usr/share/npm/lib/utils/npm-registry-client/get.js:139:12
npm ERR!     at cb (/usr/share/npm/lib/utils/npm-registry-client/request.js:31:9)
npm ERR!     at Request._callback (/usr/share/npm/lib/utils/npm-registry-client/request.js:136:18)
npm ERR!     at Request.callback (/usr/lib/nodejs/request/main.js:119:22)
npm ERR!     at Request.<anonymous> (/usr/lib/nodejs/request/main.js:212:58)
npm ERR!     at Request.emit (events.js:88:20)
npm ERR!     at ClientRequest.<anonymous> (/usr/lib/nodejs/request/main.js:412:12)
npm ERR!     at ClientRequest.g (events.js:156:14)
npm ERR!     at ClientRequest.emit (events.js:67:17)
npm ERR!     at HTTPParser.parserOnIncomingClient [as onIncoming] (http.js:1256:7)
npm ERR! You may report this log at:
npm ERR!     <http://bugs.debian.org/npm>
npm ERR! or use
npm ERR!     reportbug --attach /home/pi/foo/npm-debug.log npm
npm ERR! 
npm ERR! System Linux 4.1.19+
npm ERR! command "/usr/bin/nodejs" "/usr/bin/npm" "install" "connect"
npm ERR! cwd /home/pi/foo
npm ERR! node -v v0.6.19
npm ERR! npm -v 1.1.4
npm ERR! message failed to fetch from registry: connect
npm ERR! 
npm ERR! Additional logging details can be found in:
npm ERR!     /home/pi/foo/npm-debug.log
npm not ok

The npm-debug.log file doesn't really provide more information. At first sight, it kind of looks like a network problem. However, the command

curl https://registry.npmjs.org/connect

works fine: it spits a big bunch of JSON. I've checked and it's indeed valid JSON.

Any hints at what's going wrong? Advice on how to install this package?

Answer 1

running an up-to-date Raspbian 7 Wheezy

Kind of a contradiction. The most up-to-date Wheezy is still effectively out-of-date as it is no longer being updated.

Could I upgrade this board to the latest Raspbian Jessie Lite?

Yes, that will work on all models of Pi. You can also try and "dist-upgrade" to jessie but unless you really don't want to start from scratch, I advise you start from scratch with a fresh image.

Doesn't that image require an ARM with an FPU?

They were never made without one, and your current "up-to-date" Wheezy uses it. Initially there was no OS available compiled with hardware float support -- it was a system compatible with even older ARM versions that required software floats -- but the BCM 2835 is ARM1176JZ(F)-S based, which includes an FPU. The exact same processor is still used on all models except the 2 and 3 (and I believe the original B is still available).

I have a B running up-to-date jessie installed from the lite image -- and one running "stretch", which is the next (testing) version.